The Adults: Review Haiku

Hated every
character, yet somehow did not
hate the book. Odd, no?

The Adults by Alison Espach. Scribner, 2011, 320 pages.

Lexie: Review Haiku

Like Junonia, but
with rawer emotions and
more clueless grownups.

Lexie by Audrey Coloumbis. Random, 2011, 208 pages.

Faith: Review Haiku

The mea culpas
don't come from where you think they
might in this stunner.

Faith by Jennifer Haigh. Harper, 2011, 336 pages.

Going in Circles: Review Haiku

Roller derby girls

are HOT. That's really all I

have to say on this.

Going in Circles by Pamela Ribon. Downtown Press, 2010, 336 pages.

A Tale Dark and Grimm: Review Haiku

All the cliches that
shouldn't work, do, in this smart
fairy-tale nightmare.

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz. Dutton, 2010, 192 pages.

Marty McGuire: Review Haiku

Tomboy Marty makes
princess play her own in this
charming new series.

Marty McGuire by Kate Messner. Scholastic, 2011, 160 pages.

The Sublime Engine: Review Haiku

Surprisingly moving
biography of our
most important pump.

The Sublime Engine: A Biography of the Human Heart by Stephen Amidon and Thomas Amidon. Rodale, 2011, 256 pages.

My Life, the Theater, and Other Tragedies: Review Haiku

High school theater geeks,

unite! This will feel oh so
very familiar.

My Life, the Theater, and Other Tragedies by Allen Zadoff. Egmont, 2011, 288 pages.

Sidekicks: Review Haiku

Look! Up in the sky!
It's a crime-fighting hamster
and chameleon! Duh.

Sidekicks by Dan Santat. Levine/Scholastic, 2011, 224 pages.

We'll Always Have Summer: Review Haiku

Love the emotions,
but are there really NO other
guys on Cape Cod?

We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han. S&S, 2011, 304 pages.

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour: Review Haiku

The best kind of love
story: slow, natural, and
full of cream soda.

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. S&S, 2011, 368 pages.

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters: Review Haiku

Family drama
has never been quite so much

wicked, heartfelt fun.

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters by Natalie Standiford. Scholastic, 2010, 320 pages.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making: Review Haiku

Equal parts Tollbooth,
Wrinkle, and Oz. Charming, if
self-consciously so.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente. Feiwel & Friends, 2011, 256 pages.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children: Review Haiku

Is it normal that
I found the pictures scarier
than the monsters?

Miss Pettigrew's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. Quirk, 2011, 352 pages.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer: Review Haiku

Supernatural

crazy-pants-ness wins with its
charming nonchalance.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride. Holt, 2010, 352 pages.

The Social Animal: Review Haiku

Proves Forster's hoary
dictum has ring of truth to
it. Dense but snappy.

The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement by David Brooks. Random, 2011, 448 pages.

Then Came You: Review Haiku

Weiner's latest had
me sympathetic right until
the end. . . . The hell?

Then Came You by Jennifer Weiner. Atria, 2011, 352 pages.

State of Wonder: Review Haiku

Rogue researcher sends
Marina into uncharted
territory.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. Harper, 2011, 368 pages.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz: Review Haiku

Label kids "damaged
goods," and they'll behave just like
you expect them to.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King. Knopf, 2010, 336 pages.

Shameless: Review Haiku

Fertility advocate
embraces her hidden
sex-goddess self.

Shameless: How I Ditched the Diet, Got Naked, Found True Pleasure . . . And Somehow Got Home in Time to Cook Dinner by Pamela Madsen. Rodale, 2011, 288 pages.

Best Staged Plans: Review Haiku

The importance of
keeping up appearances,
in work and in love.

Best Staged Plans by Claire Cook. Hyperion, 2011, 256 pages.

Delivering Happiness: Review Haiku

Rah-rah memoir from
a Young-Turk CEO who
got lucky with shoes.

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose by Tony Hsieh. Business Plus, 2010, 253 pages.

Dumpling Days: Review Haiku

The Lins go to Taiwan,
and Pacy learns about
dual identities.

Dumpling Days by Grace Lin. Little Brown, 2012, 246 pages. (Sorry, no image or URL available online yet!)

Every Last One: Review Haiku

Brutal tragedy
and the thousand small betrayals
that presaged it.

Every Last One by Anna Quindlen. Random, 2010, 320 pages.

Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life: Review Haiku

Debunks "lizard brain"
idea, but not as clever
as he thinks he is.

Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life: A Psychologist Investigates How Evolution, Cognition, and Complexity Are Revolutionizing Our View of Human Nature by Douglas T. Kenrick. Basic Books, 2011, 256 pages.

Crazy U: Review Haiku

Hapless dad tackles
college admissions while
trying not to succumb.

Crazy U: One Dad's Crash Course in Getting His Kid Into College by Andrew Ferguson. S&S, 2011, 240 pages.

Awkward Family Photos: Review Haiku

And I thought that pic
of me in pegged jeans and a
black beret was bad.

Awkward Family Photos by Doug Chernak and Mike Bender. Three Rivers Press, 2010, 192 pages.

What Happened to Goodbye: Review Haiku

Mom's betrayal means
Mclean lets no one in --

until, at last, she does.

What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen. Viking, 2011, 402 pages.

How I Killed Pluto: Review Haiku

Astronomy has
never been so entertaining,
so cut-throat.

How I Killed Pluto (And Why It Had It Coming) by Mike Brown. Spiegel & Grau, 2010, 288 pages.

The Cookbook Collector: Review Haiku

Tech-bubble tycoon
and eco-scholar sister
navigate love, loss.

The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman. Dial, 2011, 432 pages.

Thirteen Reasons Why: Review Haiku

Searing, yet oddly
hopeful look at how we fail
those who need us most.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. Razorbill, 2007, 304 pages.

Wonderstruck: Review Haiku

A fitting HUGO
follow-up: creativity
and family.

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick. Scholastic, 2011, 608 pages.

Smokin' Seventeen: Review Haiku

Oh, Stephanie. You
claim a cursed sex drive, but you're
quickly turning skank.

Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2011, 320 pages.

Around the World: Review Haiku

Three adventurers
circumnavigate under
Phelan's trusty pen.

Around the World by Matt Phelan. Candlewick, 2011, 240 pages.

Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Review Haiku

Why millennial
feminists go Gaga for
Disney prosti-tots.

Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture by Peggy Orenstein. Harper, 2011, 256 pages.

Spoiled: Review Haiku

The Fug Girls do YA,
to bitchy-keen effect.
Well played, as they say.

Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan. Poppy, 2011, 368 pages.

Swimming in the Steno Pool: Review Haiku

Packaged like chick lit;
dry like academia.
Caveat reader.

Swimming in the Steno Pool: A Retro Guide to Making It in the Office by Lynn Peril. Norton, 2011, 291 pages.

Can't post. Reading.

As I did last year, I'm going to take a brief summer hiatus and catch up on some excellent reading, beach and otherwise. See you in August.

[Image found on The Book Lady's Blog]

Swim the Fly: Review Haiku

Teenage boys in all
their horny, lying, dumbass,
endearing glory.

Swim the Fly by Don Calame. Candlewick, 2009, 352 pages.

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette: Review Haiku

And again I say,
why am I not a Penderwick?
Maine-ly awesome.

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall. Knopf, 2011, 304 pages.

The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party: Review Haiku

Maimed cattle, illegitimate
twins, new shoes, and --
at last! -- a wedding.

The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith. Pantheon, 2011, 213 pages.

The Art of Immersion: Review Haiku

Takes a while to get
there, but a nifty look at
storytelling now.

The Art of Immersion: How the Digital Generation Is Remaking Hollywood, Madison Avenue, and the Way We Tell Stories by Frank Rose. Norton, 2011, 354 pages.

The Last Little Blue Envelope: Review Haiku

MJ gets it right:

love, death, longing, heartbreak --
plus the best car EVAH.

The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson. Harper, 2011, 288 pages.

Sweet Valley Confidential: Review Haiku

Their wedding procession
song was from Phantom of
the Opera?!? *dies*

Sweet Valley Confidential: Ten Years Later by Francine Pascal. St. Martin's, 2011, 293 pages.

Squish: Review Haiku

Is there nothing the
Holm kids can't do? Fun new series
for squishy boys.

Squish #1: Super Amoeba by Jennifer L. Holm and Matt Holm. Random, 2011, 96 pages.

Beginner's Grace: Review Haiku

A primer on prayer
right when I needed it.
Reverend Kate speaks the truth.

Beginner's Grace: Bringing Prayer to Life by Kate Braestrup. Free Press, 2010, 272 pages.

The Pioneer Woman: Review Haiku

Couldn't get enough
of this real-life love story.
Cowboys are sexy.

The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: A Love Story by Ree Drummond. Morrow, 2011, 352 pages.

The Wilder Life: Review Haiku

Poundy lets her
prairie freak flag fly: A road trip
for budding Half-Pints.

The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie by Wendy McClure. Riverhead, 2011, 352 pages.

Trouble Maker 2: Review Haiku

Well, that was a waste
of a good half an hour

of my life. Piffle.

Trouble Maker, Book 2 by Janet Evanovich and Alex Evanovich. Dark Horse, 2010, 112 pages.

The Trouble with May Amelia: Review Haiku

I'm starting a line
to punch May Amelia's father
right in the mouth.

The Trouble with May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm. Atheneum, 2011, 224 pages.

Five Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth: Review Haiku

More new content would

have been nice, but you still can't
beat a pterobear. RAWRRRRR!

Five Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (And Other Useful Guides) by Matthew Inman. Andrews McMell, 2011, 160 pages.